Duke of Kent School

All children are different in ability and temperament and in their aspirations – but all children like to know that they are doing well. Children also love stretching themselves to new heights and we love to praise our pupils’ forward steps. We want them, at all times, to strive for their personal best. The School’s ethos is challenging but caring, and pupils are shown that even in failing they are often learning to succeed.

The School was amongst the first Prep Schools to be fully co-educational and now, with 25 years of experience of the benefits of boys and girls learning together, we’re well placed to ensure that all our pupils make the most of their time here. The real world is co-educational, and so is this School!

Our small class sizes ensure that every pupil is engaged and involved. Socially, we provide the best of both worlds, in that our boys and girls do enjoy their own company, as well as mixing with their opposites.

Please click here  to view our Independent Schools Council (ISC) from January 2007.

• to provide a safe, caring environment in which all children can flourish;
• to provide a challenging and stimulating education capable of stretching and supporting each child according to his or her abilities;
• to encourage children to live as energetic and creative members of the community through placing due emphasis on learning the difference between right and wrong and on the importance of respecting the rights of other people to be themselves.
• to offer a wide range of activities - sporting musical, artistic, dramatic - so that each child may have the opportunity to experience success and fulfillment and to enjoy the self-esteem which accompanies them;
• to develop in each child an awareness of the spiritual dimensions of life and of the importance which faith plays in the lives of people throughout the world;
• to engage parents and staff in a genuine partnership so that the children in our care may be properly nurtured throughout their formative years and given the best possible start to their lives;
• to continue to have a particular concern for the needs of Foundationer pupils supported by the RAF Benevolent Fund.

At the heart of the successes we have enjoyed over the years is the skilled teaching the School provides in all its subjects. Our staff and pupils build up relationships based on mutual respect and these strong bonds constantly refresh the appetite for learning. Adults enjoy being teachers here as much as children enjoy being pupils. We support our teachers and pupils with excellent resources.

In virtually all subjects our ICT facilities help to add new dimensions to learning. Attractive Apple Mac equipment is provided in both our Computer Room and through our state-of-the-art laptops. These can be used in any of our classrooms, thanks to our wireless network. Teachers use the latest software to enhance the learning experience in their subjects and keyboard skills are taught to encourage pupils to become fluent users of ICT. Interactive whiteboards are in use throughout the School.

The aim of the curriculum here at the Duke of Kent is to stimulate, challenge and excite our pupils. To this end we offer a broad and balanced curriculum, encompassing the core academic subjects, complemented by plenty of sport, art, music, DT and extra-curricular clubs and activities.

Each child's progress is carefully monitored using both end of year examinations and standardised tests. Parents receive regular updates on their children in addition to reports, written in the Autumn and Summer terms.

Class sizes are small, allowing for much individual tuition. This helps to ensure that all our pupils are given every opportunity to excel, not just in academic lessons, but also in the arts or on the sports field.

Route Maps give an overview of a pupil's progress which will help to ensure that he or she is working towards agreed goals and that any problems which may arise can be addressed within the context of these overall goals.

It has often struck us that the longest and most meaningful conversations with parents concerning aspirations for their children sometimes take place at the very beginning of the process, when a place at the School is being agreed. At that time we talk in great depth about the direction we hope the pupil may take. Thereafter, we may not talk in that way again for the next nine years! This is because there is no set structure for such discussions. Of course our regular Parent/Teacher meetings do provide an important forum for discussions of this nature, but by necessity they take place under pressure of time and rightly tend to focus on recent detail.

Once again all our leavers in 2010 were successful at Common Entrance and our children progressed on to a wide range of Senior Schools. We prepare our pupils to succeed in a competitive educational world in a way that gives them excellent foundations for all the examinations ahead.The area is well served for VIth form options, whether through public schools or VIth form colleges - calculations have shown that there are approximately 60 possible options within 40 minutes drive! Here is a sample of the schools our children have moved on to in the last five years.

Download the  updated Development Plan November 2009